In the fields of electronic surveillance, telecommunications, biology, medicine, and explosive devices, for example, there is a need to investigate the interaction of samples with electromagnetic radiation (EMR) at different frequencies and at different levels and directions while simultaneously exposing the samples to a controlled temperature environment. Such samples may include solid state devices, biological samples, and/or samples in liquid or gaseous state. The fundamental properties of a sample may depend on the temperature at which the sample is kept, the frequency of the electromagnetic wave that is incident to the sample, and the angle and power of the incident wave.
Some properties of electronic components can only be measured when the component is sufficiently cooled. For example, some electronic components are specifically designed to detect RF radiation but such detection is possible only when the component is adequately cool. Additionally, for example, some infrared sensors only work at low temperatures, as higher temperatures cause enough thermal noise to obscure sensing the signal of interest. Some biological samples, for example, may be easier to work with when cooled, as known levels of radiation are necessary to kill certain types of viruses or cells when the biological sample is cooled to a known temperature.
Thus, there is a need to investigate, characterize, and test samples when the samples are cooled to certain desired temperatures while the sample is simultaneously exposed at different angles and power of broadband electromagnetic energy ranging from DC to Tera-Hertz frequencies. There is also a need to measure the responses of a sample to incoming broadband EMR from DC to Tera-Hertz and to measure how the incident EMR alters the property and performance of the sample. There is, however, no current method for measuring a sample cooled, for example, from 3 Kelvin (K) up to 350 K, while the sample is exposed to electromagnetic radiation from DC to Tera-Hertz, in particular for wavelengths below infrared, commonly referred to as “the radio spectrum”.